Sky watchers in most of the United States have the opportunity to see a Fourth of July lunar eclipse tonightt. But the minor eclipse on Independence Day will be hard to spot, and observers shouldn’t expect mind-blowing views of the moon in Earth’s shadow.
the July full moon it will pass into the lightest part of the Earth’s shadow, which is called twilight. The penumbral lunar eclipse will thus see the surface of the moon darken very slightly. But even if you can’t see the eclipse that well, the moon is always a fun observation target.
The eclipse will begin tonight at 11:08 pm EDT (0308 GMT on Sunday, July 5) and will end on Sunday at 1:53 am EDT (0553 GMT), according to In-the-Sky.org. At most, depending on your location, 35 percent of the visible moon will pass into Earth’s shadow. The reduced surface eclipse will make it even more difficult for fans to see the light eclipse unless they have good photographic equipment.
Related: See Jupiter, Saturn and a lunar eclipse ‘Buck Moon’ this Fourth of July
Eclipse stages
The penumbral eclipse begins: 11:07 pm EDT (0307 GMT).
Maximum eclipse: 12:30 am EDT (0430 GMT)
The penumbral eclipse ends: 1:52 am EDT (0553 GMT).
In general, most people don’t realize the penumbral shadow cast on the moon until at least 70% of its diameter is covered, “said Space.com columnist Joe Rao. said in our guide. “Some people who have very sharp vision and better-than-average perception may notice very slight shading when only 50% of the moon is in half-light. But in the case of Saturday night, darkening is only a little over 35%, not enough to cause any kind of visual impact. “
Eclipse expert Fred Espenak gave Spaceweather.com a similar forecast. In fact, Espenak said, the lunar eclipse can be invisible.
“Because the Moon will only pass 1/3 of the way to Earth’s shadowy shadow during the lunar eclipse on July 4 and 5, it WILL NOT BE VISIBLE with the naked eye.” Espenak told Spaceweather.com. “Digital photography can reveal subtle shading if the image contrast increases dramatically.”
However, even if you can’t see the eclipse, there are other things in the sky that night to enjoy.
Related: Lunar eclipse 2020 guide: when, where and how to see them
Do you see the lunar eclipse?
If you see the Buck Moon 2020 lunar eclipse, please let us know! Send images and comments to [email protected] to share your views.
The eclipse will begin just 14 minutes before the full moon, called the Buck Moon or Thunder Moon, according to NASA SkyCal. The moon will also be a few degrees from Jupiter, and Mars will be visible in some regions of the Pisces constellation, Rao said. Just under 14 hours after the eclipse ends on Sunday, the moon and Jupiter will meet at 5:38 pm EDT (2138 GMT), shining less than two degrees apart in Earth’s sky.
Most of the United States will see the eclipse, and some regions will see the moon at the apex of their path through the sky and out of reach of the worst light pollution. However, Alaska is excluded, and those in the western parts of the southern 49 states will only see part of the show. Regions that see at least part of the eclipse worldwide include South / West Europe, much of Africa, much of North America, South America, the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Antarctica , according to TimeandDate.com.
This penumbral event completes a set of three eclipses in the past month. A “ring of fire” solar eclipse occurred in parts of Africa and Asia on June 21, and another penumbral lunar eclipse occurred on June 5.
Americans interested in seeing a more visible penumbral eclipse can try their luck during the pre-dawn hours of Nov. 30, when about four-fifths of the moon’s diameter will be within twilight, Rao said.
There are no webcasts for the Independence Day eclipse so far, but we’ll add links if any are available.
Editor’s Note: If you take a photo of the night sky image and want to share it with Space.com readers, please send your photos, comments, and your name and location to [email protected].
